Polish Migrants More Choosy About Their Jobs in the UK

Signs are growing that the tide of Poles going to work in Britain may have peaked.

According to the UK Home Office, the number of workers applying to work in the UK from the A8 countries – the eight eastern and central European nations of the As analysed by Latvian Abroad here, almost two-thirds of the 683,000 workers who have applied to work in the UK from A8 countries have come from Poland.

The latest UK figures appear to show that eastern and central European migrants had started to move up the jobs chain and are occupying more professional positions.

Some 41 per cent of registered workers applied to work in administration, business or management posts during the latest quarter. This compared with 25 per cent three years ago when Britain opened its job market to A8 workers.

On the other hand, UK fruit and vegetable growers have warned this week that they are facing a struggle to attract sufficient eastern and central Europeans to harvest their crops because A8 workers had become more choosy about the work they undertook.

According to the Home Office the hospitality industry has accounted for 19 per cent of jobs filled by A8 workers, and agriculture 11 per cent, since 2004.